10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 3, 2020

But, unlike most books focused on a bird family, this one is organized geographically. Each chapter focuses on a specific geographic area of penguin population: (1) Antarctica, (2) South Georgia, (3) Falkland Islands, (4) South Africa and Tristan de Cunha, (5) New Zealand and Australia, (6) South America and Galapagos.

Penguins 279

Penguins Georgia Albatross New Zealand 279

10,000 Birds

MARCH 29, 2015

We saw a smaller member of the potoo family, Northern Potoo , Nyctibius jamaicensis , at Cuero y Salado Wildlife Refuge, boating and birding the Salado River. I had seen Thick-Knees in South Africa, but I was very excited to see this species, which is the only member of its family found in Central America.

Honduras 262

Honduras Birds Costa Rica South Africa 262

10,000 Birds

JULY 21, 2022

The one bird I did not see here, however, was the Bateleur Eagle … One highlight in the area is the Saddle-billed Stork , likely to be the tallest species in the stork family. Another member of the stork family, the African Openbill , looks like it is could benefit from a good orthodontist. And sadly, it is listed as Endangered.

Ostriches 147

Ostriches Parrots Eggs Africa 147

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 6, 2012

And, I started daydreaming about encountering something a little different, maybe a Horned Frog, Ceratophrys cornuta, a large, squat green and brown frog of South America, with a wide mouth large enough to eat other frogs as well as reptiles. There’s the Goliath frog from South Africa—up to one foot in length and over 6 pounds in weight.

Reptiles 202

Reptiles Madagascar Family New York City 202

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 22, 2022

So, it sometimes comes to South Africa to relax and enjoy relative anonymity. While hoopoes are in their own family, DNA studies suggest that the hoopoe diverged from hornbills, and the wood-hoopoes and scimitarbills from the hoopoe. Of course, the second explanation makes a lot more sense.

Zimbabwe 147

Zimbabwe Benin South Africa Birds 147

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 2, 2014

With a trip to South Africa on the horizon at the time, I thought I could handle it. Not a great place for a family vacation, though I think Duncan will disagree. Species Accounts are grouped by family, following what appears to be Sibley and Monroe’s 1996 taxonomy. (I Now, I’m not so sure. Artwork is by Karen Phillips.

Brunei 190

Brunei Asia Birds China 190

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 3, 2021

Ballantine and Hyman explore how birds communicate and summarize studies on how that communication functions in diverse bird families all over the world. Their text is combined with 200 (rough count) brightly colored photographs, many full or three-quarter page in size, and 10 charts and diagrams.

North America 279

North America Research Birds America 279